


The Apples

by rbreea



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-26
Updated: 2020-07-30
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:20:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,773
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25529566
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rbreea/pseuds/rbreea
Summary: A short little story about the knights of the round table and merlin stealing apples in an attempt to make gwen something for her birthday.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 10





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I haven’t watched the show in a while, so there might be some details that don’t make sense. In this story, Uther is still alive, Arthur is the crown prince, him and Gwen aren’t yet together, and all the knights are alive. (Gwaine, Percival, Leon, Lancelot, and Elyan)  
> Also I am not a very good writer, and I don’t know much about writing techniques and such. I had this idea and wanted to share it.

“MERLIN!”

Merlin sat up and opened his eyes. He rapidly blinked up at the blurry blonde figure standing in front of him.

“Merlin you idiot. What are you doing?” Arthur sighed and rubbed his head, “Get up. Now.”

Merlin slowly got to his feet and rubbed his eyes. He looked around and saw a couple of the knights walking away towards the armory. “that’s right,” he thought, “training.”

“Merlin are listening to me?”

Merlin looked at Arthur and quickly blurted out, “I wasn’t sleeping!”

Arthur rolled his eyes and began to walk away, signaling that Merlin was to follow. He stumbled after the prince and rubbed his eyes in an attempt to wake himself up.

“You’ll need to polish my armor, sharpen my sword, clean my boots, wash my clothes-“

Merlin felt himself deflate. His afternoon plans of relaxing were suddenly forgotten as Arthur added more and more chores for him to complete. He looked up as Gwaine and Percival walked by. They both gave Merlin sympathetic looks as Arthur continued to add chores to the already long list. 

Then Arthur abruptly stopped walking and said, “Oh yes, and Merlin? Make sure to remind me this afternoon after my bath that I need to look around the palace greenhouse. The cook informed my father that someone had stolen some apples from in there, and he asked me to look into it.”

At this statement, from across the training field, Merlin saw Gwaine and Percival look over at him and Arthur, share a strange amused look with each other, and disappear around the corner. “That was weird. I should see what that’s about.”

“Merlin you buffoon did you hear a single thing I said??” 

“Yes, you royal prat, my ears do work!” Merlin scoffed and began to walk towards where he had seen Gwaine and Percival when he heard Arthur mumble under his breath, “I would hope so, given the size of them.”

Merlin smiled to himself and kept going on his way to the armory. “I deserved that one. For falling asleep during training.” 

—

Merlin walked through the door into the armory, and saw that only Gwaine, Percival, Elyan, Lancelot, and Leon were left. They were laughing about something one of them had said, and they didn’t see Merlin walk in. 

“Arthur is still clueless. He has no idea!” Gwaine laughed.

“I don’t think we should do it again. We might have enough.” Lancelot was trying hard not to smile, “Arthur would surely catch us if we tried to go back.”

“Plus, we’ve already picked most, if not all of the ones close to the bottom.” Leon was also trying not to smile, in an attempt to be the voice of reason. “We would have to smuggle in a ladder, or find a way to climb to the top of the tree.” 

“Well then we will have to figure something out, because we only picked a handful. We still need a lot more, and all the good ones are at the top.” Elyan sighed.

“So it was you guys!” Merlin laughed as the knights turned around with startled expressions on their faces, “I saw Gwaine and Percival when Arthur mentioned the apples were being stolen. I wanted to see why they looked so amused.” he explained with a smirk.

Lancelot smiled and looked to the others, “I told you he would figure it out.” 

“Merls, please don’t tell Arthur.” Gwaine stepped forward with a hopeful smile on his face, “We can help with your chores?”

“You don’t have to help me with my chores Gwaine.” Merlin laughed, “I want to help you guys!” 

Elyan and Percival stepped forward now, and Percival said, “Great! But like Leon said, we already got all the ones from the bottom. If we tried to get a ladder in there, Arthur would catch us.” 

“How did you pick the apples without a ladder in the first place?” Merlin asked.

“We sat on each other’s shoulders. The branches are very high up, and we could only reach the lower ones.” Leon replied as Merlin chuckled. 

“Okay I think I have a plan.” Merlin began to explain what each of the knights would need to do, and they decided they would go with what Merlin said, as it was quite a good plan. 

“We might need another person to keep watch if we go with my plan. If we only have Lancelot, Elyan, and Gwaine, the entrance to the castle by the left side of the greenhouse would be left unguarded.” Leon sighed and thought for a moment, when Merlin asked, “What about Gwen? She would keep our secret.” 

“No!” All the guards exclaimed in unison, “We can’t tell Gwen!” Elyan whispered, while the others checked the door again to make sure no one was listening.

“Well why not?” Merlin asked, confused as to why they thought they couldn’t trust Gwen to help.

“The apples are going to be a surprise for Gwen. Her birthday is coming up, and we thought we would try to make her some sort of desert.” Elyan explained, “And apples are her favorite.” he added.

“That’s the whole reason we are stealing the apples. When we asked the cook if we could use her apples, she yelled at us and threw a pan at Gwaine’s head! So we thought if we-“

“MERLIN!! Where is my useless toad of a servant?!” 

Merlin winced as the knights all looked to him with a sympathetic smile on their faces. “Guess I better go see what that’s about.” he sighed, “So tomorrow night then?” he asked quickly before he left to see what his prince needed.

“Yes. Tomorrow night.” Gwaine confirmed. They all smiled and waved to Merlin as he ran out of the armory to check on Arthur.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the knights and merlin make their plan, while arthur makes a plan to catch the apple thieves.

Later in the day, after Arthur’s bath and lunch, Arthur and Merlin walked down to the greenhouse to look around. Arthur looked around for clues as to who had stolen the apples, and Merlin looked around to make sure his plan would work, and to check for anything that could mess it up. When they turned the corner and saw the apple tree, Merlin realized it was much taller than what the knights had described, and he would definitely need to modify his plan a little bit. 

“All the apples from the bottom few branches are gone. That means they didn’t waste time trying to smuggle in a ladder. Do you know what that implies Merlin?” Arthur looked to him with a sarcastic sort of smile on his face.

“They- Uh....” Merlin stuttered, scared he would accidentally give something away if he spoke. 

“Merlin you idiot it means that if they come back, they will likely bring a ladder next time!” 

“Right. Yes. They’ll bring a ladder.” Merlin carefully stepped to the side to try to see just how much space was in between the branches at the bottom and the branches that were still full of fruit at the top. He heard Arthur reply but didn’t pay much attention to what he was actually saying. From what he could tell, the knights had underestimated how much space there was in between the lower branches and the branches at the top. Merlin’s plan would need some serious adjusting.

“-and when they try to bring a ladder, I’ll catch them in the act. What do you think Merlin?” 

“What? I mean. Yes, it sounds like a solid plan.” Merlin looked back to Arthur. Arthur just stared at Merlin for a couple seconds, rolled his eyes for the second time that day, and turned to walk away.

“Wait Sire! How- Do you know when they will come back?” Merlin asked cautiously, afraid that Arthur would think he was acting strangely.

“Well they only took a handful of apples. If it’s hungry villagers like my father thinks, they will likely come back tonight, or they will wait a couple days, to try and seem less suspicious.” Merlin nodded along, and thought to himself about how he would change his plan for the next night. The two returned to the castle, and Merlin set about on finishing his chores. 

—

When Gaius called Merlin in for dinner, he still hadn’t come up with a good solution for the problem with his plan. The tree branches were much higher than the knights had described, and it would be difficult to reach them without a proper ladder. He knew though, that a ladder was not an option.

“What is it Merlin? You look troubled. Did something happen with Arthur?” Gaius raised an eyebrow and tilted his head to the side to study Merlin’s puzzled face. 

“No Gaius. Nothing like that.” Merlin sighed and began to eat his supper. 

“Well do you need to share your problem with me? Sometimes two heads are better than one when you need to solve a problem.” Gaius took a bite of stew and continued to study Merlin. He could tell something was bothering the warlock, but he couldn’t quite tell if Merlin was upset, or just confused. 

Merlin sighed again and replied, “I just need some time to think. I don’t know what to do. There are two easy solutions, but one involves me using my magic in front of the knights, and we both know that that isn’t really an option.”

“I would hope you wouldn’t be stupid enough to use your magic in front of all the knights. What about the other solution?”

“Also not really an option, because Arthur would find us and likely punish us pretty severely.” Gaius raised an eyebrow in disapproval, “Even if he didn’t want to, Uther would make him.” Merlin added, regretting his decision to open up to his mentor. He always hated getting the eyebrow of disapproval. They ate the rest of their meal in silence before Merlin went to his room to think some more.

—

By morning, Merlin still hadn’t come up with a good enough solution. He kept thinking about it while he washed Arthur’s clothes, and soon after, while he brought Arthur his breakfast. He decided that the best thing to do for now, was to forget about it. Maybe if he put it from his mind, it would be easier to find a good solution when he came back to it.

“Rise and shine, Sire!” Merlin shouted as he threw back the drapes. The sunlight flooded into the room, and nearly blinded Arthur, who was attempting to sit up. 

He hissed and dropped back down to the bed, “Merlin!” he mumbled, “Don’t you have anything else to say besides ‘rise and shine?’” 

“Sorry Sire. Up and at ‘em? The early bird gets the worm? let’s have you, lazy daisy?”

Arthur groaned, “Now what have I told you about the lazy daisy one?” he sat up and rubbed his eyes as Merlin began picking out his clothes.

“That it’s stupid and I should not say it?” Merlin smiled as he pulled Arthur’s shirt out of the cupboard.

“Exactly. See? You’re learning.” Arthur slowly made his way over to the table to eat his breakfast. He was especially hungry this morning for some reason. 

Merlin helped him get dressed after he ate, and the two set out for yet another afternoon of training. 

—

Several hours later, Merlin quickly helped Arthur out of his armor, and hurried away to the armory where the knights were slowly taking their own armor off, waiting for everyone else to leave. There, when they were finally alone, they began figuring out the rest of their plan for that night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay, okay, I know these are really short chapters, and they probably won’t get any longer at this point. But yeah thanks for reading and please give me feedback and criticism and kudos


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They go through with their plan, but a couple things go wrong

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It was pointed out to me by my friend that trees don’t really grow in greenhouses, so I wanted to specify for you guys that this greenhouse has one of those weird back areas that is kind of just an open place where taller plants can grow.

Merlin, Lancelot, Elyan, Gwaine, Leon, and Percival had decided to meet up in the armory, since it was pretty easy to sneak into the right entrance of the greenhouse from there. There were still some holes in their plan, but they knew they had to do it tonight, since Guinevere’s birthday was two days away. 

“Okay,” Merlin whispered, “Does everyone know what to do? Gwaine, Elyan, and Lance, you guys will have to watch for Arthur or anyone else who walks by, in the right, front, and armory entrances to the castle. The left will just have to be unguarded. It’s the least common entrance near here, so hopefully no one will come out of it. Gwen should be at home by now, so we shouldn’t have to worry about being caught by her.” Merlin looked to Leon and Percival next. “You two will be in the greenhouse with me. Instead of my original plan, we will have to try something a little different. I’ll explain when we get there okay?” They both nodded. The group agreed that if anything went wrong, Lancelot, being the closest, would go to the greenhouse to see if they needed help, and the other two would head back to the armory right away. They couldn’t risk being caught by anyone. Especially Arthur. 

—

Merlin, Percival, and Leon walked around the dark greenhouse until they came to the apple tree near the back. 

“Okay Merlin, what do we need to do?” Leon looked up at the tree and realized it was indeed much taller than they had originally thought. 

“Well first, Percival, could you do me a quick favor?”

“Of course Merlin. Anything.”

“Kneel.”

Leon stared at Merlin, “What are you trying to do here Merlin? I don’t understand.”

“Don’t worry. I think it will work, if we do it correctly. 

—

The moonlight was bright in the corridor next to the supply room. This was where Arthur was hiding, waiting for the thieves to come for a ladder. He figured since no villagers would have a ladder tall enough, this is where they would come. So he waited, and he kept waiting patiently, until he heard a crash. He stood up and looked around, startled. He peered out of the window next to him, and to his surprise, he saw Lancelot sneaking around a corner, and into the greenhouse. “Okay,” he thought, “he probably heard the same crash and was close, so he thought to investigate.” Arthur grabbed his sword from where it lay next to him, and ran down the corridor to get to the greenhouse. 

—

“Leon!” Merlin whisper-shouted, “All you have to do is get on Percival’s shoulders! Just like you said you did last time!”

“Well last time I had Elyan on my shoulders! I’ve never done this before Merlin!” Leon protested as he looked up at the warlock, who was currently sitting on one of the lower branches in the tree. He had stood on Percival’s shoulders, while Leon had made sure neither of them had fallen, and had Percival slowly stand, so Merlin could climb onto a lower hanging branch. 

Merlin sighed as Leon attempted to yet again climb onto Percival’s shoulders, when suddenly, Leon lost his grip on the tree trunk, and he fell into a cluster of empty flower pots. Merlin jolted upright in the tree and nearly lost his own grip. The three of them just stared at each other in shock. There was no way no one heard that. 

After a few moments, Lancelot was standing there with them.  
“What happened?” he whispered, “Merlin why are you in the tree?” 

“Quick! Help Leon get on Percival’s shoulders. He has to stand on them.” Merlin pointed to the two knights on the floor, “We might not have much time. Gwaine and Elyan might have gone back to the armory if they heard it, and someone else could have heard it!” 

—

Arthur snuck around the same corner as Lancelot had moments before, and heard vague whispering coming from the greenhouse. He carefully snuck into the greenhouse, and as he got closer to the back, he heard a familiar voice whisper, “Gwaine and Elyan might have..... someone else... heard it!” 

Now very confused as to what was happening, Arthur glanced around some tall bushes to see what was going on. To his surprise, he saw Lancelot helping Leon to stand on Percival’s shoulders. For some reason, he felt a dire need to stay hidden, which was stupid. He was their prince, they were knights. He should be able to put them in their places. Just as he gathered himself and was about to step around the bushes, he heard the voice again.

“Okay, good, now Lance, help Percival stand as well. Percy you okay down there?” 

Percival responded, “Yes. Lancelot help me move closer to the tree.” 

As they started doing what the voice had said, Arthur looked around to try to find the owner of the familiar voice. Just as it hit him that it was Merlin’s voice, he looked up and saw the servant sitting in the tree. Arthur stumbled backwards and tried to wrap his head around what was happening. After a couple moments, he decided to wait and watch for the perfect opportunity to come out and catch them in the act. 

—

Merlin leaned against the tree trunk and shut his eyes, rubbing them. He hadn’t thought of what to do in case this wouldn’t work. Leon was the next tallest after Percival, so if he were to try to replace him with another knight, they might not be able to reach the top. 

“Okay- Ye- Good! Now Leon, just lean against the tree, and Percival, try to stand up.” Lancelot helped to guide Percival to a standing position, and stepped back to examine how much higher they would need to go. 

“Lance! I think if Percival and Leon are good like that, you could climb up and stand on Leon’s shoulders.” Merlin was standing on the branch now, and his knees were at the same level as Leon’s face. 

“Merlin you really are insane aren’t you?” Leon muttered.

“I think so yes.” Merlin replied, nonchalant, “Percival? You good for one more person on you?” 

“Mhm. Just try to make it quick.” 

Lancelot stepped forward and looked up at Merlin, “Merlin just.... try to help as best you can.” 

Merlin nodded at Lancelot, leaving Leon, Percival, and Arthur, who was still watching from behind the bushes, confused. 

Lancelot managed to climb up Percival and stand with Leon on his shoulders. Instead of climbing up Leon, he held out a hand to Merlin, put a foot on a hand Leon put down to help support Lancelot, and climbed onto the same branch Merlin was already on. Arthur continued to watch them with a strange fascination as Lancelot went to stand on Leon’s shoulders, still using the tree trunk for support. Lancelot and Merlin were whispering to each other, and Arthur couldn’t quite make out their words, but he saw Lancelot lower a hand like Leon had done for him, and watched as Merlin climbed up to then stand on Lancelot’s shoulders. With the added height of both Lancelot and Merlin, they could reach a branch at the top of the tree that was a little lower than the rest. “How did they do that so quickly?” Arthur wondered to himself, “Maybe Merlin is stronger than I thought...” What Arthur hadn’t seen however, was a quick flash of gold in Merlin’s eyes that had helped to haul him up onto Lancelot’s shoulders. 

Merlin quickly grabbed on to the new branch, pulled himself up, and disappeared into the leafy top of the tree. Lancelot climbed down to the lower branch, and then dropped to the ground. He turned to help Leon come down, when in a low voice, Merlin said, “Did we bring a basket?” 

From the other side of the bushes, Arthur smiled to himself at Merlin’s question, and decided now would be a very good opportunity to reveal himself. Then from a place Arthur couldn’t see, he heard footsteps walking towards the other three knights on the ground. The knights heard them too and quickly turned towards them. 

“Gwaine. Elyan. You scared us.” Leon chuckled.

“What are you guys doing here?” Percival asked.

“Well we heard a crash, and we figured something had gone wrong so we both went back to the armory like you said, Mer... Wait where’s Merlin?” Elyan looked around in confusion. Gwaine looked up, and he saw a face sticking out of the leaves. 

“Hey Merls!” Gwaine waved up at him and smiled, “How’d you get up there?” 

Elyan looked up with Gwaine to see Merlin sitting half hidden in the tree. Merlin smiled down at them and replied, “Gwaine. Elyan. Do either of you have a basket?


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Merlin does something kind of stupid that leaves Arthur and the knights shocked. Also they pick some apples

Gwaine and Elyan’s sudden arrival had left Arthur feeling a little shocked. All of his friends were in on this. Why? What are they doing, and why hadn’t they told him? Surely they weren’t stealing them simply for eating. But the more Arthur thought about it, the less it made sense, so he went back to watching and listening in silence.

“Thanks again for agreeing to do this with me. Gwen will love it I’m sure!” Elyan smiled to the group.

“Of course! We all wanted to do something special for her birthday, and this was just a perfect opportunity.” Leon responded with a warm smile. 

“Less talking! More catching!” Merlin whisper-shouted down to the knights.

“Catching? Wha-“

Gwaine was cut off by two apples falling towards the ground. He and Lancelot dove to catch them before they hit the stones. They all looked up at Merlin with shocked expressions on their faces. The servant just smiled and said, “Well how did you think we would collect the apples?”

Gwaine chuckled and put the two apples Merlin had dropped into one of the baskets. A little while later, the first basket was full, and they started filling the second. Merlin tossed them down, and the knights caught them. Most of them....

—

Arthur was now stumped. They had mentioned Elyan’s sister, Guinevere, and her upcoming birthday. What exactly were they trying to do? Should he stop them? He trusted them after all, and he knew they wouldn’t betray his trust. He tried to move, tried to walk around the bushes and confront them, but he couldn’t make his legs move. For the first time in a very long time, he had absolutely no idea what he was supposed to do. 

He looked up at his servant in the tree. He looked at his smiling face as he tossed down apples. It didn’t look like a face that was betraying his masters trust with evil intent. It looked like the face of a boy who was having fun, doing something good for a friend. 

“Then that’s exactly what they are doing,” Arthur decided. He continued to watch his friends gather apples, knowing now for sure, that he shouldn’t confront them.

—

“Okay Merls! I think that’s enough. Both baskets are filled.” Gwaine searched through the leaves to find the boy, and smiled when he spotted him. 

At about this moment, all the knights, Including Arthur, realized that Merlin was essentially stuck in the tree. Unless they somehow got him down the same way he got up, which would likely take way too long, he would be stuck up there. Merlin saw the concern and confusion in their faces and knew immediately what the problem was.

“Don’t worry guys I have a way to get down.” He reassured them.

When he didn’t move or make any effort to get down from the tree, Percival asked, “Well, How?

Merlin hadn’t actually thought this far ahead. He could easily get down using magic, but the knights would never agree to leave Merlin alone. That wasn’t an option then. So he said the first thing that came to his head.

“I’ll uh- I’ll jump!” 

At this, Arthur nearly gave his hiding spot away. But he resisted his overwhelming urge to jump up and yell at his idiotic servant. Instead he sat down, put his head in his hands, and sighed, rubbing his temple. While he did this, the other knights had immediately begun to protest this remark. They all essentially told Merlin he was an idiot, in their own different ways. 

Merlin decided to ignore their protests. He leaned off of the lowest branch he could reach from his position and told them, “Stand back, and please shut up. Someone could hear you guys!” The knights all instinctively moved towards Merlin as the warlock let go of the branch, and fell to the floor. He didn’t reach the floor though, instead the knights, apparently sharing the same thoughts, dove forward to try to catch him. 

For a few moments, no one moved. Arthur, still hiding, had to clamp down even harder on the urge to scream at the idiot, then check to make sure he was alright, then scream at him some more. Of course he also had the urge to make sure his knights were alright as well, but the urge to check on Merlin was absolutely overwhelming him. 

From under Merlin, all five knights collectively groaned. Merlin had obviously used magic to slow his fall, and he would’ve rolled out of his landing to make it look normal, but the knights didn’t know that. 

Merlin guiltily climbed off of the knights, and stood awkwardly beside them. “Are- are you guys okay?” he whispered.

Gwaine groaned and managed to stand. They all helped each other get to their feet, while Gwaine said, “You are very lucky we all like you Merlin. If we didn’t, you probably would have killed yourself right there.” 

None of the knights were laughing anymore. Instead they were staring at Merlin as if he had just grown an extra head.

“What were you thinking??” 

“Why would you do that Merlin??”

What are you an idiot or something? That was stupid-“

“Guys, come on. Merlin wouldn’t have died. I once saw him fall down a hill while we were on a hunt and do you know what he did? He stood up, laughed at himself, and walked away! He’s much tougher than you give him credit.” Lancelot moved to stand next to Merlin, defending the warlock. Of course, he was the only one who knew for certain that Merlin wouldn’t have died, but he couldn’t tell them that.

Gwaine just shook his head and let out a small laugh. “Well at least you are alive Merls. Never do anything like that again though, or I will kill you myself.” 

“Agreed,” Lancelot said.

The other knights were still speechless, slightly dizzy, and in shock from Merlin’s brash act. 

From just a little ways away, Arthur was sitting cross-legged on the floor, quietly thanking whatever forces had allowed Merlin to survive that fall, and thanking his friends for feeling the same sense of protection over his servant. 

He was still curious as to what the group was planning, and he decided to confront them after their third day, in a row, of training the next afternoon. He quietly snuck away to go back to his chambers, while his friends continued to quietly discuss Merlin’s stupidity.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the long wait!

The next night, the night before Gwen’s birthday, Merlin snuck out of Gaius’ chambers, and made his way towards the kitchen. It would be mostly empty at this time of night, and the knights had told him to meet them there so they could start baking.

When he got to the kitchen, he saw two servants, still finishing up their chores before heading home. 

“Hey,” he whispered, “you can leave those dishes there, I’ll get them for you.”

The servants looked up at him startled, and shared a confused look with each other. 

“I mean, if you want.” One of them shrugged and put down his remaining dishes. The other girl followed in suit, and the two left the kitchen to go home. 

“Well that was easy!” Merlin thought to himself, while he examined the rest of the kitchen. 

Gwaine and Elyan opened the door to the kitchen, carrying one basket of apples, and looked around the room. “Where are the others?” Elyan asked.

“Not here yet, obviously,” Gwaine smirked and let out a soft chuckle.

While they waited, they began clearing off a section of countertop they could work on. The other knights slowly arrived, and soon they were all huddled around the baskets sitting on the counter, not quite knowing how to start. 

Percival took initiative and began whispering commands. “Lancelot and Elyan, start peeling these apples. Gwaine, go fetch some flour and sugar. Leon, find some bowls, I will help you and try to find a tin to make the pie in, and Merlin.... Do you know where to find eggs?”

Merlin nodded, and walked towards the door. The others started their tasks, and quietly talked among themselves. 

When they had all gathered back in the kitchen, they had everything they needed to make a pie. The others helped Lancelot and Elyan peel the remaining apples, then listened as Percival told them what to do next. 

“How is it that you know how to make a pie?” Gwaine asked Percival.

“My mother taught me how when I was younger,” He replied.

“My mother tried to teach me, but Gwen was always much more interested,” Elyan said.

The others laughed quietly and finished their preparations. 

“Now what?” Merlin asked.

“Now, we bake it.” Percival replied.

He got it into the oven, Lancelot already having started a fire with a little help from Merlin, and they began to clean up the giant mess they had made. 

There was flour all over the flour, seeing as Gwaine had spilled it, and there was leftover dough covering the countertop. 

Merlin gathered the dishes and began to wash them. Elyan cane over to help him, and they quickly finished. As they put away the dishes as best they could, the others were sweeping the floor, washing the counters, and trying to make the place look spotless. 

“How long do you reckon we let it bake for?” Gwaine asked when they had finished cleaning. He was now crouched next to the oven, watching as it cooked.

“We will have to pull it out and check on it to see how long it needs.” Percival answered.

A little while later, they pulled the pie out of the oven, satisfied with the golden-brown color of the crust, and let it cool down on a small cutting board. It smelled delicious, and Merlin had to stop Gwaine from trying to stick his finger in to taste it three times. 

It was now early morning, and they knew that the cooks and servants that worked in the kitchen would be arriving soon, so they took the pie, and left the kitchen. 

“Okay, Merlin go find Gwen, and bring her to the courtyard.” Elyan instructed.

Merlin nodded and ran off to search the castle for Gwen. Easily enough, after about five minutes, he found her walking down a large corridor, humming to herself.

“Gwen!” he called out, “Come with me, it’s urgent.” 

She turned around at the sound of her name, smiling at her friend. “Good morning, Merlin. What’s so urgent?” 

“I just really need you to follow me to the courtyard.” He replied.

She furrowed her eyebrows and began to follow Merlin to the courtyard. She didn’t think he had forgotten her birthday, but she wasn’t quite sure. She hadn’t seen Elyan this morning either, which was odd.

Merlin looked behind him to make sure she was still following, and when he turned forwards again, he ran straight into someone. 

“Oh! I’m so sorry I wasn’t looking-“ he burst out, “Oh, Arthur. Hello.” 

“Merlin. And where were you this morning? I woke up, and you weren’t there, the drapes were shut, and do you know what was on my table?” Arthur glared at his servant, “Nothing. No breakfast. Absolutely. Nothing. Care to explain?” 

Merlin gulped and looked behind him to check on Gwen again, who was now standing a bit further away, looking down at the ground respectfully.

“Nope. Not really. We really have to go though.” He said, smiling at Arthur, grabbing Gwen by the hand, and running for the courtyard.

Arthur stood in the hallway, confused but not shocked by his servants words. He was used to this by now. He turned and quickly followed behind them, staying slightly behind to keep out of sight.

Merlin pulled Gwen along, closer to the courtyard. 

“Really Merlin, what’s this about?” Gwen asked.

Merlin said nothing, and continued to pull her along behind him. They reached the doors, and walked out into the courtyard. He saw the knights huddled together, and smiled. 

When Merlin and Gwen approached the knights, they quickly turned around, concealing something behind their backs. They were all smiling like idiots.

“What is-“ Gwen began, but she was cut off before she could finish.

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!” They all shouted, revealing the still warm apple pie from behind Elyan’s back. Elyan walked forward and handed his sister the pie, absolutely beaming.

“We made it for you. All of us.” he told her, gesturing to the others. 

Gwen was speechless. She stared down at the pie, mouth open and eyebrows raised. After taking a moment to let it sink in, she looked up at them and smiled. 

“How can I ever thank you? This is.... This is so amazing!” She giggled, looking down at the pie again.

The knights and Merlin all began to talk over one another, saying things along the lines of, “No need to thank us,” “It was nothing,” and simply, “happy birthday.” 

Gwen laughed again, and looked up at them. Something behind them caught her eye though, and she rushed towards them. “You’ll be late for training, look!” 

Behind them, other knights were gathered on the training field, looking around. 

They all said one last “happy birthday” to Gwen, before they rushed off to the armory, leaving Gwen and Merlin alone.

Arthur watched as the knights ran off to prepare for training, and smiled. It all made sense now. He knew he probably should still reprimand and punish the lot of them for stealing, but he knew he wasn’t actually going to. He watched as Guinevere and Merlin walked back into the castle, talking excitedly. He would have to find her later and wish her a happy birthday. He walked towards the training field, already ready to go, and figured reprimanding his knights for being late would have to suffice. He also figured that reprimanding Merlin for “forgetting” to wake him up would suffice as punishment for stealing from the royal greenhouses. 

The rest of his knights made their way onto the field, and began warming up. 

Arthur watched his friends smiling and laughing with each other during the majority of their training, and he found himself smiling throughout the rest of the afternoon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading! I hope you liked it :)

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading! sorry, I know it’s kind of short. please let me know of any mistakes in the story or in my writing


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